Gannett will soon deliver the weekly magazine to 100,000 subscribers in 15 U.S. markets, taking over a service that had been provided by the U.S. Postal Service. By the third quarter, Bloomberg Businessweek announced today, it expects GCI will expand delivery to nearly 400,000 subscribers -- more than 40% of its circulation -- in 31 markets.
Bloomberg's Expedited Morning Delivery service is already available to 350,000 subscribers through arrangements with other newspaper publishers and private delivery services.
The service comes amid threats by the postal service to end Saturday delivery.
Bloomberg made the announcement; there is nothing about the deal on Corporate's website. It would appear that this is another new client for Gannett Publishing Services, a subsidiary formed in September 2011 to handle newspaper production and delivery for GCI titles and outside clients.
Financial services giant Bloomberg L.P., founded by New York Mayor Michael Bloomberg, bought 84-year-old Businessweek in late 2009.
Bloomberg's Expedited Morning Delivery service is already available to 350,000 subscribers through arrangements with other newspaper publishers and private delivery services.
The service comes amid threats by the postal service to end Saturday delivery.
Bloomberg made the announcement; there is nothing about the deal on Corporate's website. It would appear that this is another new client for Gannett Publishing Services, a subsidiary formed in September 2011 to handle newspaper production and delivery for GCI titles and outside clients.
Financial services giant Bloomberg L.P., founded by New York Mayor Michael Bloomberg, bought 84-year-old Businessweek in late 2009.
Phoenix has been delivering Bloomberg for a couple months now. Seems to be working out OK. You just have to remind the carriers that on a certain day they have an extra product to deliver. Someone associated with circ can speak about the issues with Bloomberg better than I can.
ReplyDeletePhoenix tried a similar "business product" delivery many months ago. A local journal aimed at business WAS being delivered by USPS. Someone in Phoenix convinced the paper's publisher that The Republic could do the job cheaper. I don't know if "better" was in the conversation.
What happened was that business people used to getting their journal in good condition, in a clean mailbox, ended up getting the paper folded, bent and mutilated. If the business was closed on Saturday, the paper sat in a dirty driveway getting run over and sometimes rained on. Unless it was stolen first. That experiment lasted a quarter or so.
As for the post office and Saturday delivery . . . no one NEEDS mail delivered on Saturday. Product delivery can be timed for any day of the week. Same goes for government checks. Saturday mail delivery is like Monday or Tuesday newspaper delivery - a loss leader. And anyway, post OFFICES will be open Saturdays, and packages and special delivery items such as Express Mail will still be delivered Saturday. You just won't get junk mail and bills and magazines.
When I started in Circulation in the late '70's, the Director at that time was working on moving mail subscriptions to a motor route delivery platform. Reason, the post office was moving to a 5-day delivery, dropping Saturdays. Is everyone still asleep at the wheel? Drop your 6-day delivery and make it 5-day (HD-Mon-Friday). Get outside and blow some stink off yourself. Pick up a copy of the Saturday paper (SC), buy a lottery ticket and a small hot cup of coffee, sit down and talk with some people. It will do wonders for you.
ReplyDeleteThe problem is that GPS has outsourced so many deliveries that there is no way to guarantee service since Gannett has no control over much of the delivery system anymore.
ReplyDeleteUSA Today is being delivered by the Pioneer Press and the Star Tribune in the Minneapolis Market. USAT has let 80% of their DSM's go from their Circulation Department, along with their CD, 1 CM, GM, Controller, IT person etc. They moved recently out of their nice comfy building and now have office space at their print site. The Star currently delivers their own paper, USAT, NYT, WSJ, IBD and others. Both the STRIB and PP do a great job with the delivery.
DeleteCongress approved a budget last Thursday, which includes mandated six-day delivery:
ReplyDeletehttp://news.yahoo.com/congress-set-force-postal-keep-saturday-delivery-144607874--finance.html
Reading that article, Saturday six day delivery still looks to be in jeopardy.
ReplyDeleteOne of the primary business directives for GPS is to load the network and add more alternate delivery products to the existing distribution network. That concept has been around for quite some time in the newspaper delivery business, but GPS is aggressively and successfully soliciting new business as part of the model to increase profitability.
All of you who love print should be encouraged by, and supportive of, the effort in this area. The only way there is a "network" to load is if there is a core Gannett print product distribution network in place.
Bloomberg’s expanding role of govt intrusion (attempting to squash 16 oz. drinks, hiding cigarettes in retail venues being the latest) has made me consider dropping anything with his name on it…..delivering his magazine via my driveway versus my mailbox will make that choice even easier as it will be my last issue.
ReplyDeleteRight. You probably don't even subscribe. If you did and this was your reason you would already have stopped since delivery has nothing to do with politics.
DeleteWhat else do you get with his name on it?
All hot air.
Re-read the post 2:05 as I wrote I’d been CONSIDERING it which shouldn’t be a difficult concept, yet you struggle with it.
DeleteFunny.
Bloomberg opened the door as I have no interest of this going in my driveway. Whether or not I still retain the online version – which I prefer more, is up in the air.
12:26 PM
I live in Phoenix, and Gannett has been delivering my Businessweek for a couple of months.
ReplyDeleteIt was great to get the magazine on my driveway on Saturdays, instead of in the mail a few days later. But the service has been poor - some missed deliveries and one rain-soaked magazine.
I called the Arizona Republic's circulation number about one missed issue and was told that I would have to contact Businessweek because Gannett didn't provide customer support for its Businessweek deliveries. That's odd.
Businessweek also showed up on my driveway while I was on vacation. Fortunately, a neighbor picked it up so that it wasn't left there advertising to burglars that I was out of town. The solution from Businessweek: Give the magazine three weeks' notice to stop delivery. Yeah, really.
After another issue didn't get show up, Businessweek reviewed the delivery problems and decided to go back to mailing my magazine.
If my experience is typical, Gannett has a long ways to go to make this work.
Well, Gannett doesn't provide customer support for its own deliveries, either.
DeleteI'm confused. The first paragraphs says 100,000 and then 400,000. Which is it?
ReplyDeleteThe immediate number of deliveries will be 100K; by the third quarter, it is to expand to nearly 400K.
DeleteI think you are wrong. There is no way in the world GPS will be delivering 400,000 copies.
DeleteAccording to Wikipedia the June 2012 circulation figure was 993,000. That includes retail sales as well. Are you saying GPS covers enough of the country to deliver nearly half their copies?
Do you mke up this stuff?
This should be very interesting I can't get the carriers to deliver our own local paper without some misses or wet papers. I wonder what they are going to pay the carriers for this and when they miss what the charge will be.
ReplyDeleteOur carriers already deliver the local Gannett paper, USA Today, and WSJ. Misses and complaints are abundant. Especially poor for the the WSJ.
ReplyDeleteThis is so frustrating! The carrier only delivers when he feels like it. No one owns it for customer service -- can't talk to a real person at Bloomberg about it. Haven't received the magazine in 2 weeks.
ReplyDeleteThis service is terrible in Massachusetts. The magazine is delivered, but it frequently rains or snows in New England, and (regardless of the cheap plastic bag) this leads to my BusinessWeek being soggy and unreadable. When our snow drifts melted in the spring, I even found a few issues from the winter months. This idea does not work in New England, and it is causing me to stop my subscription.
ReplyDelete